At MedNorth Urgent Care, we’re proud to be a full-service family care provider. Whether you or a loved one is experiencing an illness, needs a physical, or requires urgent care, we’re here for you, seven days a week. We also offer other health essentials, including annual shots, injury treatments, and various forms of on-site testing, including ECGs and x-rays – you’re busy, and we get that, so we strive to make everything easier and quicker for you in Kalispell, MT.
Burns are among the more common injuries. We can effectively treat them at our practice, but knowing what to do right after such a mishap can help you achieve the best healing outcome possible while decreasing pain and the odds of scarring. So, keep the following tips in mind, and please contact us as soon as possible to seek professional treatment with Dr. Shane Hill and Dr. Scott Rundle.
Burns are a common injury across all ages
In case of a burn, it’s vital to seek professional aid as soon as possible to discover the true magnitude of the damage and to receive at-home recovery tips and tricks. Especially as even minor burns, or what may seem like a minor burn, can lead to numerous complications, such as infection if left untreated.
The commonality of burn injuries stems from the fact that multiple modern substances and processes can cause thermal injuries. The most obvious and ubiquitous are physical, like fire, steam, or liquid burns. Electrical burns can be caused by faulty electrical appliances or sockets. Furthermore, contact with everyday items – like bleach, ammonia, and car battery acid – can result in chemical burns.
It’s important to know how to treat each type and to check for the signs of infection or more serious harm. Fortunately, Drs. Hill and Rundle have vast experience in treating various burns and formulating an effective aftercare regimen for patients of all ages.
What should be done immediately after a burn injury?
The best treatments are sometimes counter-intuitive, and that’s the case here. It’s crucial to avoid applying ice or cold water to the burn, as this does not improve healing outcomes – quite the opposite.
One should try to clean the area by removing anything from the burn, including fibrous objects, clothing, or cotton balls, as long as the material is not stuck to the injury. Applying cool, not cold, water for 20 minutes can facilitate this cleaning process, followed by the application of antibacterial cream, then sterile gauze.
Afterward, see us for professional medical attention. We can prescribe medications and creams to dull the pain and kill any microbes while cleaning the injury and assessing the harm. This urgent attention is especially warranted after a chemical or electrical burn. Furthermore, if you experience oozing, fever, redness, and increasing pain, these are all signs that you should seek help right away.
Battle back against burns with urgent care
Burns, even those that may seem minor, have the potential to cause infection or more severe after-effects. Dr. Shane Hill and Dr. Scott Rundle can evaluate the injury, clean the site, and provide timely and effective care that makes it more likely that you, or a loved one, will attain an optimal outcome. So, to protect yourself and your family, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at MedNorth Urgent Care in Kalispell, MT.